We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Andres Avello a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Andres, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

A few years ago I was the middle of a move from house to apartment. In the chaos of packing, I realized that my beloved paddle boards and kayaks were going to have to be left behind. Crushed that my paddle boarding routine would be soon coming to an end,

I looked for solutions. After tons of research I realized that paddleboarding today is just too difficult: owning equipment is expensive and cumbersome to lug and store, while traditional rental concessions are inconvenient and inaccessible to most due to pricing and operating hours.

Around that same time, my town had just signed on board as a pilot city for Lime when I had my “aha” moment — I saw the success they were having first hand within my neighborhood, and set out to replicate the model for my fellow water lovers. The rest is history!

Andres, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

PADL is on a mission to get more people out on the water to experience what’s out there. Through the creation of paddle share and patented dual-locking technology with the support of growing sharing-economy habits, PADL is able to achieve the mission and promote a healthy, active lifestyle. Paddleboarding today is just too difficult: owning equipment is expensive and cumbersome to lug and store, while traditional rental concessions are inconvenient and inaccessible to most due to pricing and operating hours. PADL makes getting on the water easy. Docking stations with smart boards are placed in convenient locations available to use.

The stations securely house four smart paddleboards, which can be unlocked and rented via the PADL mobile application. Each station is solar-powered, equipped with safety gear, and located steps away from shorelines. PADL smart boards each contain GPS technology for users to monitor routes, track distances, and engage with the PADL community. GPS technology plays a critical role in our commitment to safety, with real-time tracking of our active rentals and our partnership with Sea Tow gives us the reliance of 24/7 on-the-water support.

The mobile app features a location-based map that showcases the stations: location details, number of boards available and rate. The rental process from here takes less than 30 seconds – users stand in front of the board they wish to ride with their mobile device in hand, and Bluetooth technology will prompt a pop-up to confirm rental. Once they accept, payment is processed, and the board will unlock. Not sure how to carry a paddleboard? A 3-step infographic will appear on the app that demonstrates how to safely remove the board, paddle, and lifejacket from the rack. Now the fun can begin!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Building the reputation in our market was a fairly simple path with a lot of hard work. It was all about being at our locations, meeting with our riders and going above and beyond to resolve any issue that came up.

The same is true today, only it’s not only the founders doing this, but everyonne on the team!

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Growing up as kids my partners and I met while fishing and diving from our kayaks around Miami. The water has been an inspiration in our lives ever since. It is hard to imagine having a bad day out on the water, some of our favorite moments are going out for sunset paddle rides and seeing dolphins swim by.

We created PADL to give everyone the opportunity to enjoy the bodies of water that surround them – beaches, lakes, and rivers are typically the most beautiful part of every town, and everyone should have access to enjoy them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.padl.co/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ridepadl/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ridepadl
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ridepadl
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ridepadl/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ridepadl

Image Credits
No credits – photos owned by us (PADL LLC)